That said, Dungeon Encounters is a very specific type of RPG for a very specific type of RPG player. Different sorts of players may latch onto different components of an RPG completely, and they might adore it all the same. Some RPGs have deep stories or captivating characters, some have beautiful worlds to explore and get lost in, some have cool combat, customization, or progression systems. The great thing about the RPG genre (and why we at RPG Site are drawn to them, of course) is that their multifaceted nature often has something for everyone.

Eschewing storylines & character arcs for battles & numbers, Dungeon Encounters is an interesting little project from one of the all-time genre greats. Here he announced minimalist ATB RPG Dungeon Encounters, which would be released only a few weeks later. Ito is somewhat of an unsung founding father of the Final Fantasy series, being more technically-minded and placing gameplay over narrative, whose own stated philosophy is to incorporate game concepts so smoothly that narrative designers can focus on story elements without worrying about how the game will play alongside.Īfter such a long absence, it was quite a surprise to see Ito make a rare appearance during Square Enix's Tokyo Game Show stream event earlier this year. Known for his seminal gameplay design concepts and conceiving long-lived battle mechanics such as Active-Time-Battle (ATB) all the way back in 1991 for Final Fantasy IV, it's easy to declare Ito as simply one of the most influential game designers of the genre. Ever since directing Final Fantasy IX and taking over for Final Fantasy XII, not much has been seen of Hiroyuki Ito in the last decade or so.

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